Halloween Festivities at New Westover
It’s good to know well in advance what’s ahead! Halloween is always a busy day for Arlington families, and we...
Read moreInterior Photos of New Westover
http://www.flickr.com/apps/slideshow/show.swf?v=71649 Check out the landscaping,
carpeting and outside book returns
on our new Westover Branch Library building.
In Between Days: Returns and Holds at Westover
Feel free to return all Library materials to the Old Westover Branch Library until Saturday, Sept. 26 at 5 p.m. ...
Read moreA Time Capsule for Westover
The Arlington County Cultural Affairs Division is sponsoring a time capsule for the Westover community, to be installed this fall...
Read moreThe Great Outdoors
Swimming in Arlington The young girls above are enjoying a rarity in Arlington County: swimming in an outdoor pool. Although...
Read moreCan You Help Me Track Down My Long Lost Friend?
You might want to try these library tools: Reference USAThis online tool searches US Postal Service data, including the National...
Read moreThe Arlington Years: OLD Westover Will Close Sept. 26 in Preparation for NEW Westover
The Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh Greetings Readers, We wanted to let...
Read moreOld Westover Closing Date: September 26, 2009
Saturday, Sept. 26 has been set as the official closing date of our current Westover building. Public operations will cease...
Read morePlaza Staff Rec: 'Eating Well in Season'
Thinking about joining a Farm Share/CSA, or getting your produce from your local Farmer’s Market instead of the grocery store?...
Read moreWestover in the News
Click on architect’s rendering to get a closer look at the new Westover Branch Library – Reed School building. Video...
Read moreWhere can I find the City of Arlington?
Actually, there isn’t one!No incorporated towns or cities lie within Arlington’s boundaries.“Arlington is an urban county of about 26 square...
Read moreNew Westover Building To Open In Late October
The new Westover Branch Library building is currently set to open in late October, with an open house for our...
Read moreThe Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh More details to come but we’ve...
Read moreAll libraries are special, but the Library of Congress is truly unique in many ways: SIZE: It’s the biggest library...
Read moreThe Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh Sad news today about someone who...
Read moreCan You Recomend a Good Doctor?
We can’t give medical advice, but Washington Consumers’ Checkbook can help you find a local doctor with a good reputation....
Read moreArlington Reads 2009 Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court On April 30, Library Director Diane Kresh and Arlington...
Read moreDo Arlington's Street Names Follow a Pattern?
They do, and knowing what it is will probably save you some time. Named streets generally run north-south and are...
Read moreLittlest Italy
Quarries for Washington Arlington is not known for its vibrant Italian community, but actually at one time there was a...
Read moreThe Arlington Years: New Thursday, Friday Hours for Cherrydale, Glencarlyn; Westover Remains Open
The Arlington Years Thoughts From County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane KreshHello again, Thank you for your patience...
Read moreWe don’t keep track, but you bet Social Security knows! This government agency indexes the most popular names for a...
Read moreAn Historic School
From School to Historical Society Driving along Arlington Ridge Road you pass an old two-story brick building with a bell...
Read moreThe Arlington Years: Aurora Hills to Keep Hours; Cherrydale, Glencarlyn Reduced By One Day
The Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh More details on the approved FY...
Read moreJacobs Castle
Over the years, Arlington County has seen many residences and buildings rise and fall, but few can claim to have...
Read moreThe Arlington Years: Fiscal Affairs Advisory Commission on FY 2010 Proposed Library Budget
The Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh As submitted to the County Board,...
Read moreThe Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh Hello,The following is based on questions...
Read moreThe Arlington Years: Arlington Public Library Service Reductions and the FY 2010 Budget
The Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane KreshDear friends,As we adjust to the new...
Read moreClose Encounters
UFOs in Arlington! Arlington’s X-Files, Pt. 1 At some time in our lives, most of us have seen something puzzling...
Read moreThe Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh Please read the proposed Department of...
Read moreThe Arlington Years: The Day the Music Died (almost)
The Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh Fifty years ago today teen pop...
Read moreSnowy Fun and Games on "County Hill"
Excerpt from our Oral History with Clyde Shepard
The Arlington Years: Are you ready, Senator?
The Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh Visit Flickr for more of my...
Read moreThe Best Kind of Activist
Remembering Ellen Bozman When Arlingtonians attend a Neighborhood Day celebration, shop at retail stores built in high-rises across the street...
Read moreThe Arlington Years: Meet "The Librarian" of 1947
Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh
The Arlington Years: My brush with Elvis
The Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh Yesterday was the King’s birthday. He...
Read moreThe Arlington Years: At Your Service
The Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh Several weeks ago I had the...
Read moreThe Arlington Years: Looking Ahead
Don’t Touch that Dial—A Yule Blog from the Director
Do you hear what I hear? As another holiday season has us in the grip (or gripe), I am reminded...
Read moreA Parkington Christmas
The commercial area now known as Ballston was called Parkington from the 1950s into the 1980s. The name referred to...
Read moreThe Arlington Years: A Shout Out for Innovation
The Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh A capacity crowd was treated Dec....
Read moreThe Old Oaken Bucket
Oral histories are a vibrant and personal part of the Virginia Room’s collection. Here, Barbara Ball Savage, a W &...
Read moreCounty Board Meetings 2003-2007 Available for Download
The Plaza Branch Library has received a completed set of County Board meetings from 2003-07. They are stored on a MyBook...
Read moreThe Arlington Years: Arlington Talks
The Arlington Years Thoughts from County Native and Arlington Public Library Director, Diane Kresh On a brisk and clear September...
Read moreTime Marches On
The ruins of Abingdon Plantation sit on a hill by a roadway in busy Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The...
Read moreLocal Girl Makes Good: 1956 Olympics
CLH Archive Post: Shelley Mann, an Olympic gold and silver medalist in the 1956 games in Melbourne, Australia, was a...
Read moreA Day at the Beach
Arlington Beach and Amusement Park opened May 30, 1923, on the Potomac River in the vicinity of the Long Bridge...
Read moreEverything Under the Sun
Ayers’ Variety & Hardware in Westover is a unique store; their specialty is everything. From screws to toys to lawn...
Read moreLife During Wartime
On May 24, 1861, Union troops came over the river to Arlington. At the time, Alonzo Hayes, Jr., lived with...
Read moreArlington Analog Technology
Ellis Radio and Television Cleffie L. Ellis was born in Warren County, N.C. and moved to the Washington area in...
Read moreChanging Times
As an example of Arlington’s gradual change from a rural to an urban county, a milk can is used to...
Read moreStormy Weather
The photo above is of an unidentified industrial area of Arlington flooded by the Potomac River. If you look carefully,...
Read moreBoy Scouts – Still Doing Good Turns
Excerpt from Oral History with Walter DeGroot Boy Scouts today are still working on merit badges, and Eagle projects,...
Read moreArlington Spring Resort
The first outdoor recreation area in Arlington was developed at Arlington Spring on the banks of the Potomac near...
Read moreAn Early Hybrid Vehicle
The Evans Autorailer was a unique gasoline powered bus with retractable flanged pilot wheels with the ability to run on...
Read moreWWII brought much growth and development to Arlington. But as one can see from this photo of the interchange of...
Read moreRixey Mansion
Among the many stately and historic homes located in Arlington County, the Rixey Mansion deserves a special mention. Set on...
Read moreBrick Works
Clay deposits on the shore of the Potomac supported a considerable brick making industry in Arlington until well into the...
Read moreARLINGTON ROCKS—PT. 2: "PENTAGRAM"
The long standing heavy metal group Pentagram may never have had a best selling album or inked a lucrative...
Read moreBack To High School in 1925
Excerpt from Oral History with Sally B. Loving Football program Washington-Lee High School is currently undergoing a major renovation ,...
Read moreSummer Reading Fever, circa 1961
The library could hold 100,000 volumes, although, at the time of opening, the library could only fill one-third of the...
Read moreArlington Rocks, Part 1: The Cherry People
After the Beatles launched the “British Invasion” of the 1960s, it seemed like every town in America soon had any...
Read moreMilling Around
The Barcroft Mill not only provided wheat and corn meal to local residents, but also helped to shape and define...
Read moreAt the Movies
The Buckingham Theatre Built by the developers of the Buckingham Community in 1939, The Buckingham, as it was known, was...
Read moreLook Out for Spy Hill
The area known as Spy Hill may not be the largest neighborhood in Arlington, but it certainly can claim to...
Read moreWhen Cows Were Local
Dairy farming in Arlington? Why yes, Virginia, there once was such a thing. In fact, Arlington was home to a...
Read moreWartime Housing
J.E.B. Stuart Homes The J.E.B. Stuart homes were one of several federally funded projects that built low-cost WWII housing with...
Read moreArlington’s Hoover Airport
Whenever the subject of air travel or airports in Arlington is raised, it is perhaps inevitable that talk of National...
Read moreMystery Door
Do you recognize this scene? This photograph was taken by Eleanor Lee Templeman, author of “Northern Virginia Heritage” and “Arlington Heritage,”...
Read moreEveryone’s National Pastime
Around this time each year, the cry of “Play Ball!” heralds the start of another season of baseball. While the...
Read moreArlington Goes Green
In 1900, Congress transferred 400 acres of land along the Potomac near Ft. Myer to the Department of Agriculture in...
Read moreHome of the Sir Loiner
Arlington has never had a shortage of unique local eateries and for many, one of the most memorable was the...
Read moreInto a New Home
After a 14-year stint at what was affectionately known to many as “The Garage,” Signature Theatre has settled into its...
Read moreA Famous Neighbor
February marks the 45th anniversary of John Glenn’s space orbit. He was one of America’s original seven Mercury astronauts and orbited...
Read moreFloyd Hawkins: A Honey of a Guy
Excerpt from Oral History with Floyd Hawkins Mr. Floyd A. Hawkins, Sr. was born in 1895, and first moved with...
Read moreA Lesson in History
School Integration in Arlington When four African American students, seventh graders Gloria Thompson, Ronald Diskins, Lance Newman and Michael Jones...
Read moreWestover’s Library, 1963 – 2009
Funded by a bond referendum in 1961, the Westover Branch Library, seen here in the 1970s, was opened to the...
Read moreMmmmm… Hot Shoppes
Updated by the Center for Local History on 3/26/2018. If the phrases “chicken box for two” or “pantry pack” sound...
Read moreSaving the Small Stuff
Although you may think a ticket stub, sign, receipt or postcard is something that you use and then throw...
Read moreThe Three Sisters
While they may seem quaint or even primitive by modern standards, upon their completion in 1913, the Navy’s Radio Station...
Read moreThe Little Tea House
The Little Tea House Restaurant, located on Arlington Ridge Road, opened in 1920 and remained there until 1963 when it...
Read moreA House Fit For A King
In 1888, John Walter Clark, originally of New Jersey, bought a plot of land in the Clarendon area on what...
Read moreWhere Are We?
We Need Your Help! Do you recognize this intersection? This photograph above was taken around 1937. The signpost on the...
Read moreThe Rucker Legacy
For a century the company called Rucker Reality has been part of the Arlington business community. The company was founded...
Read moreKeeping the County Healthy
In 1919, the Arlington County Department of Health was one of the first full-time county departments for health services in...
Read moreHome Cooking
The first observance of Thanksgiving in America actually took place in Virginia. A children’s cooking class sponsored by Arlington’s Department...
Read moreAll Aboard: The Clarendon Train Station
Finding the best way to get from one location to another was as much of a concern to Arlington residents...
Read moreCracking the Code
Arlington Hall, located at Route 50 and George Mason Drive, was a girls finishing school founded in 1927. The school...
Read more“Voting Here”
In 1957, there were 46,206 registered voters in Arlington County, and there were 37 election precincts. 25 years before, when...
Read moreHalloween Party!
Oral History Excerpt with Tally Bowman Speaking of a neighborhood woman who was a member of the Women’s Christian Temperance...
Read moreArlington’s "Down Town"
Clarendon in the 1940s In 1900 when Clarendon was established as a village, it consisted of 25 acres intersected by...
Read moreWe've Been Published!
Zachary Schrag, an assistant professor of history at George Mason University, used materials in the Virginia Room and the Arlington...
Read moreThe Ashton Heights Women’s Club
The Ashton Heights Women’s Club originally started as a sewing circle that met near the Clarendon area in 1923. It...
Read more50 Years of Education, 50 Years of Good Friends
2006 marked the fiftieth anniversary of the first graduating class from Wakefield High School. Originally built to house 2,000 students,...
Read moreBreaking Religious Barriers
Herman J. Obermayer, former owner of the Northern Virginia Sun and first openly Jewish member of the Washington Golf and...
Read more"The Magazine"
The history of your neighborhood, churches, civil war forts and other historic sites in Arlington. Did you know that in...
Read moreSchool Days at Stewart Elementary
Stewart Elementary School, erected in 1938, was located at 2400 N. Underwood Street, and named for Charles E. Stewart, a...
Read moreThe Flying Machine
In 1908, Orville Wright arrived in Arlington to show his “flying machine” to military officers at Fort Myer. The army...
Read moreReady, Set, GO!!!!!
The Optimist Club For many years after its inception in 1946, the Optimist Club of Arlington sponsored a kids coaster...
Read moreFloating Repairs
The photograph above shows members of Arlington’s Department of Public Works repairing the Chain Bridge water main in 1987....
Read more